Johnson attempts to impress with press-ups
Press-ups are fitness stereotype, but do they prove you’re in shape?
ONE of the most striking pictures last weekend was the sight of Britain’s prime minister prone on the floor of his Downing Street office proving that he is full of beans after his near-death experience with Covid-19, by performing pressups in an interview with The Mail on Sunday.
As a result, his opposite number, Sir Keir Starmer, has now challenged Boris Johnson to “a first to 50” press-up competition at the next Prime Minister’s Questions session.
While you might conclude that this is all no more than testosterone-fuelled nonsense, it has raised an intriguing question: are press-ups really the key to fitness?
Their advantage, of course, is that you don’t need a gym or any kit to do them, which is why they have been a staple in fitness routines and military training for decades.
But Dr Richard Blagrove, a sports scientist who lectures in physiology at the University of Loughborough, says “they’re not a measure of fitness, adding that they simply give an indication of muscle strength”.
Press-ups say little about how well your cardiovascular system works, for example, or how good your lung capacity is – an important question for Johnson, given that he has had Covid-19.
“I’ve worked with a lot of long-distance runners and typically, they can’t do many press-ups – some can’t do 10,” says Blagrove.
“But no one would suggest they aren’t incredibly fit.”
We would all have a balance of strength and cardiovascular fitness, although as we get older, improving strength has the edge, as it is important to moderate the wasting effect of age on muscles.
Functional strength, such as getting out of chairs and climbing stairs, starts to decrease as we get into our 60s, 70s and 80s, so weight-bearing moves such as press-ups are key, he says.
Press-ups should be done alongside other strength moves, but are better than the plank as an overall strength exercise.
With the plank – the technique reportedly preferred by Johnson’s predecessor, Theresa May you lie on your front and raise yourself on to your toes and forearms or palms, keeping your back flat and holding the position. The instability created by this posture means you tighten your back and stomach muscles to stop your middle sagging towards the floor.
This engages muscles deep in the abdomen, strengthening and toning them. People sometimes hold the pose for too long, though, so the stomach muscles tire and pull on the back, which can cause or aggravate pain there.
So how do you know what is a good tally?
For an athlete, male or female, the gold standard is to be able to do more than 50 press-ups, keeping the correct shape. About 30 is satisfactory. Speed is not important, says Blagrove.
The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology lists averages for different ages, figures you’ll often see repeated on websites: over the age of 50, the average man can usually do 10-12 pressups, the average woman 7-10. Over 60 this becomes 8-10 for men and 5-11 for women. They say six or fewer for a man of 50-plus and one or fewer for a woman, requires improvement.
Being able to do the “right” number for your age is a good sign of your strength, but it doesn’t say a lot about how truly healthy you are, says Blagrove.
In fact, press-ups has been removed from the army entrance fitness tests and replaced with lifting and throwing exercises. Nonetheless, show Johnston’s performance to a soldier and they might scoff. His arm placement is unorthodox and his hips are sagging – signs of a weak core and poor technique.
Blagrove says the back should remain straight, elbows close to the body, and the movement should be controlled. “What most people do wrong is lead with their chin – the head shoots forward and their face gets to the ground before their chest.
“We also tend to see the elbows flare out, which is detrimental to shoulder health – keeping them in is harder, as it uses muscles around the chest, which are weak in most people. And you must keep the trunk stiff and stable.”
Lara Milward, a London-based fitness coach, suggests: “If you can’t do a full press-up, try with your knees on the floor but keep the body in the same straight line.”
To make it easier, move your knees closer to your chest, says Blagrove, and gradually away from your chest. Go carefully, especially if you have shoulder problems or severe neck pain.
And press-ups should not be the only exercise you do – you must match pushing exercises with the same amount of pulling to prevent muscular imbalances. As an example of a “pulling” exercise at home, is gripping each side of a door fame, leaning back slightly, then pulling yourself forward.
“Or there is the classic pull-up. Just find a bar to use – perhaps the crossbar of a goal,” says Blagrove.